A Laugh By Any Name

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Giggle.  Smile.  Guffaw.  Snort.  Chortle.  Man-laugh.  Squeal.

I don't care what kind of laugh you have, but I hope you laugh often.  It's my opinion that most of us don't laugh enough and we don't laugh without editing ourselves.  Oh, you know what I mean. 

When was the last time you almost lost control from laughing so hard?  How long has it been since you threw your head back and just roared with laughter?  Do you try to maintain a sweet little laugh, but if you were to be honest, you would snort and cry from laughing so hard?

I dare you - let it out!  The world needs more laughter.  If you laugh out loud at movies or TV shows, invite a friend over to laugh with you.

Do you have friends that make you laugh?  Do they tell funny jokes, or is it simply that they are filled with such joy and wonder that time with them seems to always include an element that brings laughter?  Do you reach the point when almost everything becomes funny?

I'm fortunate to have some friends like that, and I get to spend a lot of time laughing with them.  I try to fill my life with people that make me laugh and have the ability to laugh with me.  Life's too short to be miserable.

A particular joy for me is to go out to lunch with friends and have so much fun laughing and sharing stories that we appear to be intoxicated!  I love to watch the people around us slowly become a part of our happiness.

In Spring 2010, I was able to return to my hometown and gather with most of "the cousins", a loose term meaning "the most wonderful, laugh-filled women I know and I happen to be related to them".  There are cousins, aunts, nieces, moms, daughters, etc. in this gathering but we call that group "The Cousins".  I miss them.  I want to grow up to be just like them - they laugh, a LOT and they will never, ever grow up.

NOTE: In the photo, we are actually missing several, but this picture caught the spirit of the day so well.  It is difficult to corral a group of such giddiness, but here's a few of my great family members.

One More Thing...

When was the last time you laughed uncontrollably?  Who were you with?  What were you doing?  Funny stories being told, or just good times together?

I hope you laugh.

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you or simply to connect with.

Lois Lynn

Inherited Value

http://loislynndesigns.blogspot.com/


Last weekend we picked up a few furniture items and a handful of boxes from my grandparents' estate.  They are now all unpacked and staged for integration into our own household of belongings.  As we look through them, some bring memories while others leave you surprised to know they were once owned by Grandma and Papa. 

There weren't any hidden Ansel Adams originals, no priceless treasures that would let me retire and travel the world.  But, there was value in each and every item...inherited value.  These items all have a connection, and by virtue of being inherited...they have a special kind of value.

My husband and I used to frequent estate sales, but we always missed out on the special deals.  We would get so caught up in looking into the lives of the people.  Who were they, that these items were the leftover, unwanted remnants of their story?  It always made us so sad to think there wasn't anybody in the family to cherish these personal things.  One time we found about a dozen rounds of vacation slides spanning the globe.

As I look around my home, I sometimes wonder what will become of my things.  We don't have any family to leave things to and I'm uncertain...will my tokens of life have any inherited value to anybody?


If you have some items in your home that have special stories behind them, either from an experience they represent or a story of where they came from or who they once belonged to...write that information down so it will increase the inherited value someday. 

This oil lamp is something that awed me from as far back as I can remember anything.  It drips oil so it looks like raindrops and I always thought it was the most amazing thing.  Now, I have inherited it and treasure it deeply.

One More Thing...

Do you have something special that you inherited?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you or simply to connect with.

Lois Lynn

Sharing My Friends

I'm taking a different approach today.  First, a little bit of "business".  I appreciate every one of you that chooses to spend a few minutes with my blog each week.  I do want to remind those of you that follow via e-mail that the message you receive only shows you the writing portion of the blog, but there are several other things that I include from time to time, like pictures, links to outside information, my Etsy store, etc. so please take a moment to go to the actual blog website if you can and not just read the e-mail message.  If you go to the blog, you also have the option of posting a comment, even if you are not signed into that account - you can use anonymous...but, please, tell me who you are at the end.

For the next few posts, I'll include the link here so you can simply select that link.
http://loislynndesigns.blogspot.com/

Now, on to the fun stuff!

I have some really interesting people in my life and I want to take today's blog space to share a couple of them with you.  They have not asked me to do this, I simply want to share their stories with you to allow you to meet them.

The first one is a friend of mine from church who began a mission to train for a marathon while raising funds to battle cancer.  Her dad was battling this disease and has passed while she's been in training.  I'm inserting a quote from her first post below and the link to her page so you can read her story and support her.

I'm training to participate in the Nike Women's Marathon as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, and myeloma from taking more lives. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Luci Smith's Racing To Save Lives



The second person I'd like to introduce you to is Ron Heaggy.  I heard Ron speak at our church, but did not get to meet him.  His positive attitude made an impact on me, even without directly meeting him.  He received an unusual birthday present for his 18th birthday - a paralyzed body. 

I'm including the opening statement from his website below and a link below that.  Don't forget to go look through his art and blog as well.  His art is great, but amazing when you read how he does it!  Not only just by mouth, but he turns it over halfway through and connects the picture while painting half of it as an upside-down image.  This just blew me away!  Enjoy meeting Ron. 

I also want to share that due to some recent health issues, he's not been able to speak as often and therefore his income level is dramatically reduced.  If you are touched by his NEVER GIVE UP attitude, I'd love to point out his links to donate and support the family and/or the ministry.

Hi, I'm Ron Heagy and welcome to my website. I broke my neck the day before my 18th birthday in a surfing accident. I am now a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the neck down. I chose to Never Give Up. After receiving a masters degree by typing with a stick in my teeth, I am now an inspirational speaker, mouth painter, author, husband, father, and founder of a special needs camp located in Oregon, which has given freedom to numerous individuals to explore the wonderful outdoors. I am also the founder of Life Is An Attitude LLC.

Ron Heagy (Roll on Ron)

I hope you enjoy your time looking through their pages.  These friends are inspiring to me and I hope they inspire you.  May we all live, laugh and learn from them.

Miss Me?

Do you remember that last post about "Conquering the Cluttered Room"?  I need to revise the goal I asked you to hold me accountable to, as there's been a slight detour.  That wonderfully inspiring room painted to bring me to the right attitude...is no longer the craft room.

You see, we inherited a trundle daybed I've had my eye on my entire life from my grandparents' estate.  There is one place in my little house where it would fit so the "craft room" has now become the "guest room".  In other words, it's where Mom and Dad stay when they visit.

Do I throw in the towel on the idea of being creative?  NO!  I took a little tiny corner of the basement that was the office area, turned it around, stuffed some weird little tables in there and deemed it the new "Art Studio Workshop" - catchy, huh?  I am expecting that with a title like that, it's going to be the home of great things.  :-)

There have been a few bumps in setting all of this up.  We tried to move a couch from upstairs down to the basement (oh, that's where the Art Studio Workshop is) but it didn't fit through the stairwell.  We tried different tables but they were all too big.  Now, without any furniture to speak of to sit on, it looks like the TV area has plenty of room for all of those tables that were too big.

One More Thing...

Does it take much to throw you off track and stop your momentum?  Or, are you good at perseverance?  What do you tell yourself to keep you going?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you or simply to connect with.

Lois Lynn

Conquering the Cluttered Room

I have a craft room in my home.  It's a special place that is painted bright yellow - Kayak Yellow, was the actual color name.  You can imagine it I'm sure - picture the sun and add a lemon drop.  It's deliberately colorful, with the hope of creating inspiration.  In addition to the yellow, you'll find lots of red and bright blue.

It doesn't work.

This wonderful room, nicely laid out with all my craft stuff in the right places simply doesn't work.  The other detail is that I have a very small home.  You probably guessed what's coming next - my glorious little craft room has a nickname.  "There"  When we find things that don't have a home, we look at each other and say "throw it in There".

Well, I've reached my breaking point.  I want to create stuff, I want to paint, I want to stamp, I want to glue, etc.  So...with a few hours of love this past weekend, we found the craft room once again.

I'm telling you this to inspire you to "find that lost room" that you've buried and also so you will hold me accountable.  My goal is to post a photo of one of my paintings by the end of the month.  I've never really painted anything before, so it's just going to be some random expression that happens to use paint.  I didn't want you expecting an exhilarating watercolor or anything like that.

One More Thing...

What inspires you?  Is it a dream or a room?  Is it buried?  Can you dig it out?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you or simply to connect with.

Lois Lynn 

Funky Farm

Have you ever had one of those days?  Weeks?  Months?  Seasons?  Years?

I took this picture a couple of years ago on a day trip.  Was it beautiful there?  Not so much.  Was this going to be the photo that made me famous?  Nope.  Was I going to make millions of dollars from this shot?  Ha!  It's not even a "perfect" photo - it's a little crooked, it doesn't follow the rule of thirds, it's too dark, there's too much background detail, and it's a bit distracting.

So you might be asking why I took the photo if it wasn't so amazing - what purpose does it serve?  Much less, why on earth is it being featured in a blog?  Well...it makes me laugh! 

We've heard the phrase "Funny Farm", but I just love the word "funky".  That word makes me smile, it makes me dream, it makes me want to be creative. It also reminds me of life - real life. 

When I looked up the definition, there were more than I realized and they weren't all wonderful.  Two of my favorites:

• Characterized by originality and modishness; unconventional
• Earthy and uncomplicated; natural

The first one is what I usually think of when I use the word funky (if I'm not talking about a funky smell) but I am growing to love the second one also.  Oh, if we could all be a little funkier - wouldn't life be fun?  Certainly more exciting and less predictable, and maybe a tad more relaxed as well.

One More Thing...

What will you do this week to embrace your funky?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you or simply to connect with.

Lois Lynn

Impact

The Oprah show is now off the air.  I admit it - I watched the last 3 shows.  I don't consider myself an Oprah fan and I didn't watch the show with any regularity. In fact, through the years, my pendulum has been swinging back and forth as to just how much I liked her or was annoyed by her. 

Regardless of what you think, you have to admit she has had some great things to teach us and made a substantial impact on many lives, and on the world.  This was truly evident in the multi-episode tribute to her coordinated by her staff.

She has encouraged people, especially women, to live the life they were designed for - "find your purpose."  Education and literacy have both been very important in her life.  She has inspired us to pursue our dreams and to step out of our comfort zones.  These are good things - they are impactful things.

I've had people in my life that have made an impact.  I've also had people in my life that have left me in their wake, some while thinking they made a positive impact.  I'm sure you could say the same.  Some people leave a remarkable imprint on your life and others leave as big an imprint, but it's mixed with some destructiveness or other negative qualities.

What would people say about you and the impact you've made on them?  Are you a blessing to others, and leave an impact on them that is helping to improve the world?  Or, have you pushed your way through life leaving others in your wake? 

I want to challenge you today to listen to others, validate their lives, love people, remember that you are worthy, make an impact on the world, and try not to leave others in your wake. Remember, any time I throw a challenge out there, I'm talking to myself as well!

I also want to encourage you to thank the people who have made a difference in your life - it might be the one thing that impacts them the most.

One More Thing...
What are you doing to make a difference and how can I support you?

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn

In honor of Oprah's dedication to literacy, and in tribute to the library that formed a lot of my childhood memories, I share with you a photo of my favorite library taken on a visit to my hometown last year. I always had the maximum number of books checked out at any given time.

Remember...With Love...While We Can

My church celebrated it's 100th anniversary this past weekend.  I had the honor of serving on the team that coordinated these activities, but my heart was somewhat disconnected.  I have been here since May 2000 and I have two friends that have moved away but are not planning to attend the reunion so really, why should I care about this event?

One friend is in California and I was able to visit her last month for the first time since she moved years ago and my best friend is in Alaska and was unable to return.  So, if my best friend wasn't coming...I really didn't have any heart into this for my own sake.  I had nothing to gain at this event and anticipated being saddened by watching reunions of others, while still longing for my best friend and not knowing when I'd ever get to see her again.  I didn't think I had any reason to celebrate 100 years.

I was wrong.

Friday night, I had the pure pleasure to support two of my friends simply by attending an event that they were coordinating.  What a joy to have people I love enough to want to do something for them.  Sure, there were desserts afterward...but it was for the joy of friendship that I gave up my Friday night off.

Saturday, my soul was filled to the brim and overflowing.  A glimpse of Heaven filled me.  I connect with God mostly through nature and music.  I connect with some music more than other music - it is not all equal for me.  We sang through the century with several styles of music.  I was able to enjoy the "old school" stuff I grew up with and hear the harmonies blend together.

The husband of my best friend, also someone I dearly love, led a set that restored my empty soul.  The songs and style from this era, the passion, joy, and energy they were led with, along with the heart connection I have with the people leading it - these all opened my heart, dropped down all the walls and filled me up with God.  I hear great music often, but it doesn't always get from my ears to my heart.  I was being given a huge gift from God and He was reminding me how much He loved me through those words and that music.

There was an opportunity to spend an additional 3 hours that evening with about 25 people singing, playing instruments, worshiping God and loving each other and God together that showed me so clearly that it is truly people that God uses to reach us, and to love us.  I felt more loved that night than I've felt in years and I felt like I loved more also. It was a room filled with faces that would become a part of my history due to recent events upheaving my church family. The family I knew once would never be together again until Heaven.

Even kids of friends, now in their 20's still make time to say hi and hand out hugs.  People from several chapters of my life share one common denominator - they love God.  Guess what?  They also love me and I love them.

I'm not always great with telling people how much they mean to me - I hope you are better at it than I am.  This week, I challenge you to make it a goal to tell somebody that you love them.  Consider telling someone that isn't as close to you as family, but maybe somebody that might not really know how you feel about them.

People are special.  We can remember the special people in our lives, with love.

A few weeks ago, I helped my family pack up the home of my grandparents, who have both passed on.  All of these things combined to remind me that people are of the utmost importance and most anything else can wait. 

A singing group from my college days did a marvelous version of the song, "Love Them While You Can".  This is primarily directed at the love our parents or guardians gave us, but there is a real-life application for telling everybody how special they are to us.  If the first link doesn't play, please follow the link to another version.

Take a listen to Golden Deed's version here

Video Option




One More Thing...

Remember someone special this week, with love...while we can. Then go tell them what they mean to you, or drop them a card.

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn

The Gift

I have a gift sitting on my mantle, waiting for me to decide that it is precisely the right day to open it, savor it, treasure it, and thoroughly enjoy it.  Yes, it is wrapped.  Yes, I bought it for myself.  Yes, I remember what it is.  And yes, the perfect day is near.

One year ago, I returned to my hometown for a visit and I found this little memory lane treasure.  There is a quaint, unique restaurant in town called The Guild House.  They serve one menu each day and it's in a really cool old house in downtown, The Barlow House built in 1909.  I always wanted to go there and I don't remember that I ever did.  I guess you could say it's still on my Bucket List.  While I've never had the privilege of eating there, it is known to be exceptional food.

Recently, I re-discovered the joy and reward I find in cooking.  I was reminded by a friend that one of my creative outlets is my cooking and baking.  I had never seen it that way, but he was right.  My enthusiasm and love for this have been ignited again, and the "secret" gift waiting for me is The Guild House Cookbook.  Oh, I just felt a little spark in the depths of my soul thinking about opening this gift.

I will miss seeing this treasure of joy on my mantle, waiting for me, encouraging me to be creative and share my culinary creations with friends.  However, can't you see it?  A nice gentle Spring rain, barely cool enough that I get to enjoy the fireplace one more time, sipping hot cocoa and my favorite relaxing music in the background.  Or maybe it's a bright summer day and I'm enjoying my special Tropical Passion Iced Tea I brought back from vacation and lounging in the swing in the backyard and my music is the chirping of the birds.

Whichever day it is, it will be a day of joy for me.  I intend to spend a few hours slowly turning the pages, making lists of the recipes I want to try first.  I will have to select which friend is going to be the first to sample the new flavors with us.  The day I no longer have a gift waiting for me will be the day I decide I am worth taking time for, to enjoy a simple gift that I would not usually purchase for myself.  It will be the day I say to the world "You will not control me.  You will not keep me so busy and stressed out that I cannot enjoy life.  You will not prevent me from following my dreams."

The joy that awaits me is almost immeasurable.  I am reminded of the credit card slogan from a few years ago that would sound something like this:

The Guild House Cookbook: $30The Hot Cocoa (or Passion Iced Tea): $8The Perfect Day to Dream About New Passions: Priceless

I learned this trick from my mom.  She has been known to have a gift sitting there for years and years.  I do not have that patience.  I also want to move on to another gift!  Mom, when you read this please share how long you've had that wrapped gift.

Have you ever held back purchasing a small "gift" that you wanted, but didn't think you should spend the money on yourself?

Sometimes, it's okay.  Be smart about it, but dare to think outside the gift-wrapped box and treat yourself every once in a while.


One More Thing...

Have you ever bought yourself a little present and had it waiting for you, for that day when you really need something to pick up your spirits?

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn

The Guild House exists solely through the servant hearts of its volunteers and raises money to contribute to the Henrietta Weill Memorial Child Guidance Clinic.  https://tghob.clubexpress.com

The Adventure Continues

Do you have a dream that you think is too silly so you don't pursue it or tell anybody about it?  Do you have a tendency towards a style of art, a hobby, or a particular genre of music or books but you think people will look at you funny if they knew?  Do you have a wild, quirky person inside?

WHO CARES?

God does.  He made each of us just the way He needs us to be.  I know that I don't often live my life believing this, but I hope that you do and I pray that we will all strive to improve in this area together...unless of course, you've already got it nailed down and perfected.

I was sitting in church one day and I had a navy blue purse with a lot of silver "bling" on it.  After services, a friend of mine leaned over the pew and was somewhat surprised that I would have a purse that was so embellished, and not the least bit conservative.  She learned a little more about me that day, and I learned that while my inner person selected the purse based on the way God created me - I wasn't doing a very good job of letting people know who I really was inside.

I have had dreams of being a successful artist - the medium changes, but I want to be creative for a profession.  I love bright, vivid colors that remind me of wonderful far off lands.  I laugh big when you hear me laugh.  I love big when you see me love.  I cry big when I allow it.  I dream big but don't share it.  Some of my favorite people in the world are some relatives from the next generation above me, or two.  They are not small in their life, love, laughter or dreams.  I want to be more like them.  They have allowed themselves to live the life God created for them.  They serve God by being themselves - the same one on the inside and the outside.

So, now I ask you...would it surprise you to find out my Adventure Gang Character is...

One More Thing...

Who are you on the inside?

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn

The Person Inside

About six years ago, two of my friends and I read through and studied Luci Swindoll's book, I Married Adventure.  During that time I received one of my greatest blessings ever - a chance to go on a cruise to Mexico with my best friend, at a very low cost.  Here I was in the midst of studying about adventure and I couldn't leave my study partners behind. 

We each selected a stuffed animal to represent our true selves, the person inside us that many don't know.  There were three stuffed animals in my suitcase - a brown horse, a frog, and a brightly colored bird.  While at times embarrassed, I did take photos of "The Adventure Gang" in a variety of locations including sunning on the Lido Deck and enjoying chips and guacamole in Cabo San Lucas.

I find that people can often surprise you as you begin to grow deeper in the knowledge of who they are.  I have some friends that I thought to be very humorless and kind of rigid...until I got to know them.  The opposite is also true.  I have some people in my life that are still full of surprises years after I reached the point where I really felt I knew them.  People are complex - after all, God made each one of them and just look at what He's capable of!

Our human nature tends to be pretty quick with judgment calls based almost solely on an exterior evaluation, or at best, maybe a first impression that includes conversation.  I have been working on this for years, but it's become apparent that I still have many long years of work left ahead of me.  

Last week, I was reading on Facebook about a burger contest here in town.  Needless to say, I bookmarked the page!  I discovered that one of the semi-finalists was at a place very close to work, so we ventured way beyond our comfort zone and went to this bar to try the burger.  I'm not sure I've ever been to a bar, a true bar like this one was.  There happened to be two large parties at the time, making it too loud for us to talk so we just sat there waiting for our food.  One gal there was covered in tattoos (large, odd-looking ones), kind of wild hair and an "earthy" outfit including a top that was made from a skirt.  The top was cute, but I found that I did jump to some conclusions (confession time).  There was enough of a lull in the conversation for me to hear that she had at least one master's degree, maybe even two and I believe she worked serving children.  Wow.  I was doing the very thing I get frustrated about when people do it to me.  I thought I knew her based on my first assessment.  I was wrong.

As for the burger...not a semi-finalist in my mind!  There are better ones out there, maybe soon to be featured in my blog.

Which animal do you think I chose to represent me?

I'd love to hear of any new adventures you find when you look a little deeper...to the person inside.  I hope and pray you will find somebody God has put into your life, that simply needed a closer look from you.

One More Thing...
I'd like to challenge you to step back, start over, and go deeper with some of the people you may have met along life's journey.  There may be a lot more to them than you ever expected or had the courage to investigate.  God made them and they are here for a purpose just like you are.  Do you want to miss out on those great adventures?

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn

Anticipation

Anticipation:

Expectant waiting: the feeling of looking forward, usually excitedly or eagerly, to something that is going to happen

Even as I sit and wait for the snow to arrive, I am filled with great anticipation and longing for time spent in the "tropical" yard. Oh, I know it's not really a tropical world I live in, but when the fountain is cascading, the wood chime is playing its lullaby and the breeze is whispering as it caresses the umbrella fringe I am transported to a southern region.

Anticipation brings so many memories to my mind. I remember each season of the year as I anticipated the next one's arrival. I am transported back to my school days when anticipation meant the next vacation or advancing to a higher grade. When single, marriage is anticipated. When married, anticipation can come via so many avenues - some anticipate divorce, some a 50th wedding anniversary. Some will anticipate the birth of children, only to eventually be followed by the joy-filled anticipation of an empty nest.  Who among us can forget the famous ketchup commercial with the theme song of anticipation spelled out with agonizing slowness, as we waited for that precious drop to hit our french fry?

We spend a lot of time living in this state of anticipation. What would our lives look like if we spent more time in the state of "Now"? Would we see the beautiful flowers in bloom as we drive our daily route? Would our friends and co-workers feel more loved and respected if they had our full attention instead of half our mind being filled with and focused on the anticipation of what is coming next? Would our marriages be filled with more laughter and wonder?

Would our hopes and dreams have a better chance of being fulfilled if we spent time living in Now, where we can actually accomplish something to propel us forward?

This blog is my first attempt at postponing my own anticipation. Instead of anticipating what it would be like to share my thoughts with others through my photos and my writing, I am taking action and living in the state of Now. I don't profess to be an author, but I do have thoughts that I need to allow to breathe.


One More Thing...

I'm challenging each of you to find one thing this week to stop anticipating and start living out...now. I'd love to hear about it.

Take care, and I'm always here to listen, pray for you, or to encourage you.

Lois Lynn